Batman Heroes
by Darkvampire900
Summary: A sequel to my previous Batman fic, Batman Legends. It takes place after the movie Batman and Robin. This time Batman rescues Tim Drake from a villain who is trying to hunt him and he becomes Robin. Also, the evil Dr Kirk Langstrom becomes manbat
1. Saving Robin

**BATMAN**

**HEROES**

**Chapter One**

**Saving Robin**

Batman prowled the night, leaping from building to building. He then used his bat boomerang to swing down into an alleyway where a young boy, about thirteen years of age sat curled up but trembling with fear. Batman approached him and offered his hand as to comfort him and tell him not to be afraid. The boy, however did not seem to be afraid of Batman but instead of something behind him. A large dark shadow could be seen approaching upon Batman and he turned around.

Much to his surprise standing there was a large seven foot man who was heavily built with muscles. He appeared to almost be a cross between a human and a lizard. "Hey bat! Get outt'a my way!" he yelled. Batman glared at him through his mask. "Waylon Jones… I've heard of you…" he said. "Sure ya have, it isn't every day a great wrestling champ like me emerges as a savage beast and tries to find prey" he said, somewhat snarling through his teeth as a crocodile would to its prey. Batman stepped back cautiously but still remained to guard the boy.

"You don't even know what you're doing Batman! So let me clip your wings by refreshing you… You are protecting a criminal and a traitor; He is the last heir of the Drake Family!" Waylon said.

_Flashback…_

Two-Face stood in a street corner surrounded by three henchmen. Two of them Batman recognized. They were two women who were much more deadly then they looked. Their names were Sugar and Spice. The third however, was a man. He was called Stephen Drake. "Shifty" Drake was his nickname. Two-Face smirked and flipped his coin and it landed on tails. "Awe too bad Drake I guess this means that the mission is yours" Two-Face said and letting the side of his mouth towards the evil half of his face grin. Drake walked off to another corner of Gotham City. A gunshot and a scream were heard. Moments later he came back and pocketed his handgun. "Okay let's call it a day everyone" Two-Face said and he walked off down the street followed closely by Sugar and Spice. Stephen wiped some sweat off his forehead and pulled out several stacks of money from his pockets. He had managed to grab them when Two-Face gave him the jacket and gun earlier. Stephen Drake was a greedy man; he counted the money in his hands while smoking his cigar. He then heard a loud scream which sounded like the voice of the former Harvey Dent and he ran for it. Nothing mattered to Drake now, not his home, not his job, not even his young son…

_Back to present…_

Waylon smiled at Batman revealing his large fangs. "You are protecting the son of a thief and a mobster who worked for one of your worst enemies in history!" he shouted at him. Batman's face showed no sign of budging. "You can't expect me to convict him for the crimes of his father… he chooses his path not his family" Batman said to Waylon in a way to make it clear that he meant to teach him a lesson. "Now Waylon are we going to fight or not? I do assume that's what you wanted" he said angrily. "Quite the contrary Batman, I simply want to kill the boy… and by the way my name is Croc, Killer Croc" he said and now his hideous features and insane intentions were made very clear due to his lizard like face that was twisted with madness. "Fine Croc, but I am not going to let you kill the boy" Batman said and held up his fists in a karate stance. "Well, if you insist to get in the way then I suppose I must kill you… I don't inherit Two-Face's money until the boy is in his coffin and besides, I like to kill" he said.

Within moments Batman was on the ground, claw marks were slashed across his chest where a bloody rip and wound could be seen in his costume. His arms were on top of those of Croc trying to force him off while he snarled and snapped. "You're going down Batman!" he yelled. He then leapt up and kicked Batman in the face right before he gave him a full body slam to the ribcage. Batman couldn't move, not only did Croc fight like a lizard but he had natural abilities as well. His wrestling skills would prove quite a challenge for Batman in any battle. Croc then set his foot on Batman's broken ribcage. The pain was almost unbearable but Batman tried to deal with it. "Do you know what really hurts Batman?" Croc asked in a sinister way. Batman merely grunted angrily at Croc. Croc then quickly thrust his foot down as much as he could on Batman's broken rib cage. Batman's eyes watered and he spit up blood as he felt his bones starting to pierce his lungs. Croc laughed and approached the boy who was hiding in the corner.

When he got near Tim he immediately leapt up. "Croc, you've finally caught up to me, well bring it on" he said. He quickly crouched and grabbed a long rusty metal pole. Batman looked at the badly dented pole, it had defiantly been used to fight before… maybe even kill. Tim spun on the ground, this tripped Croc. Croc laughed "Don't mess with me French fry!" he said and he tried to rise to his feet. As he began to arise Tim leaped into the air with his pole and came down upon Croc's skull, this knocked him to the ground. Croc growled at Tim who then drop kicked him in the face, giving him what looked like a black eye. As he went to smash him with a blow from his pole again Croc rose to his feet and climbed away up the wall.

Tim then dropped the pole and ran over to the aid of Batman. "Mister Batman sir, are you all right?" he asked. Batman pulled a small key with a button on it out of his pocket and pushed it. Suddenly the Batmobile swerved into the alleyway. "Help me get in…" Batman stuttered. Tim lifted Batman into the vehicle with difficulty. "Would you like… to come with me?" Batman asked slowly. "I have an offer I think you might like… Tim" he said with pain. Tim immediately hopped into the car with no questions. Perhaps he just wanted a ride in the amazing vehicle. Batman grabbed a voice recognition walkie-talkie and said into it as clearly as possible, "AUTO DRIVE- BATCAVE". Immediately after he said that the vehicle blasted out of the alley and into the street.

To Be Continued Until Part Two of Batman Heroes


	2. Alfred

**BATMAN HEROES**

**CHAPTER TWO**

**ALFRED**

Barbara chose not to follow Bruce to rescue the young boy who was rumored to be getting followed by a murderous criminal. She couldn't bring herself to do it, not when her uncle was as sick as he was. She sat at the side of the bed holding Alfred's withered old hand. He was sleeping and did not look like he was ready to wake up for a while. Just then Barbara's father, Commissioner Gordon stepped in. "Barbara honey… how is he doing?" he asked looking from her to Alfred and then back. Barbara looked at him with tears streaming down her cheeks. "Daddy… I don't think he is going to make it this time…" she said and a large frown had formed on her face. She ran up to Gordon and they were in a tight hug. "Well honey, you must've seen this coming… I mean he is well in his nineties" Gordon informed her. Barbara cried some more. Just then the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it Barb… you stay with Alfred" Gordon said and he patted her on the shoulder before walking over to the front door to answer it. When he got there he opened the door to see an elderly woman with gray hair and glasses standing there with a box of tissues, it looked as if she had been crying. "I'm sorry Mr. Wayne is not home right now but when he gets home I can tell him you came," he said. "No…" said the moping woman. "I am here to see Alfred Pennyworth…" "Oh, Well he isn't feeling very well Miss…" he began and trailed off without knowing her name. "My name is Maggie Paige. I know very well that Alfred is sick, that's why I am coming to visit him, he's my boyfriend," she said and with that she kind of shoved past Gordon and walked down the halls of the Wayne Manor to Alfred's room. Gordon quickly followed.

When Maggie got there she almost instantly burst into tears. Alfred was pale and wasn't looking in his best at all. "What's his condition?" she asked Gordon in a shaky voice. Gordon sighed and then answered, "He had a stroke… the doctors don't expect him to live much longer… He still hasn't told Mr. Wayne yet." Maggie's face grew into even more of a frown and she crouched down on the other side of Alfred and kissed his cheek lightly. With this Alfred awoke weakly and opened his eyes. He looked at Maggie and then at Barbara and smiled. He then saw Gordon standing by the door and nodded to him. "James, it's been a while," he said weakly. "It sure has old friend," said Gordon briskly and you could tell by his voice that he was hurt.

"Barbara…" he said and faced her. "Give this note to Master Wayne…" he said and handed her a small folded letter in a wax sealed envelope. Barbara nodded and wiped some of her tears. "Don't cry," he said and with that his eyes fell shut and they would never open again. Barbara started to sob loudly and fell over. Maggie screamed in cries as loud as she could and shook him wildly "Alfred wake up… Alfred!" she screamed. Gordon approached her and grabbed her shoulder and said, "It's over Miss Paige… he is dead" he said. Gordon then led Maggie and Barbara out of the room and pulled out a walkie-talkie and said into it, "Montoya… bring a body bag to the Wayne Manor please" then he put the walkie-talkie into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He dialed Bruce Wayne's number.

It rang three times before he got the answering machine, "_Hey this is Bruce… I'm out doing whatever it is that people like me do… so leave a message and I might call you back when I feel like it._" At the beep Gordon tried to speak coolly. "Bruce this is Gordon, there is a situation at the manor, we need you here as soon as possible… just finish up your bat mission and get over here" he said and then closed his phone and the door to the room and went outside to wait for Officer Renee Montoya.

To Be Continued until Batman Heroes chapter three


	3. Enter the Batcave

**BATMAN HEROES**

**CHAPTER THREE**

**ENTER THE BATCAVE**

The Batmobile drove faster and faster and appeared to be driving straight for a wall. "LOOK OUT!" Tim shouted and flinched, putting his hands in front of his eyes for defense. When he realized he was still alive he removed his arms from in front of his eyes and looked around. The batmobile was now zooming through a long underground tunnel. Tim could see a large cave ahead decorated with villain and hero keepsakes as well as the costume of the original Robin, Dick Grayson and Nightwing. Tim's mouth fell open as the batmobile came to a complete stop and the doors opened. He got out of the Batmobile and gazed with awe at his surroundings. Batman looked at him and tossed him a new Robin outfit made to fit the young boy's size. Robin looked at him questionably.

"Since you have nowhere else to go, and some of the biggest super criminals in Gotham are tracking you I figured I might as well train you to fight back... and besides… we are looking for a new Robin. So are you willing to accept this great responsibility Tim?" Batman asked and although he was still hurt, sitting in the Batmobile his face looked steady and serious. Tim's eyes widened. "Cool!" he said and immediately changed into the costume. Tim looked much smaller in the costume then Dick did. Suddenly the secret door leading from his mansion to the Batcave opened and Gordon ran in. He whispered something in Batman's ear. Tim thought he saw a tear stream down his face from under the mask but wasn't sure. Batman looked at Tim. "Tim… do you think you can stay here in the Batcave until I sent Batgirl to get you out?" asked Batman. Tim nodded. "Don't touch anything" Batman said and Gordon carried him through the door where he would be getting some rest to repair the broken ribs.

Tim sat in the Batcave spinning around his rusty pole. He looked at his reflection in a piece of shattered glass on the ground. He couldn't believe that he was actually the new boy wonder. Suddenly a smash was heard and Robin looked towards the door. He saw Commissioner Gordon and his daughter Barbara lying unconscious. Suddenly Croc walked in the door, furious and with blood dripping from his claws and teeth. Robin was scared, what had he done to Batman and the others… Batman was weak and Croc could've easily killed him. "Back off Croc!" Robin yelled at him. Croc glared violently he was no longer kidding around. "Say your prayers kid" he said taking no notice to the boy's costume. Robin spun his pole around and readied himself for battle. Croc charged at him slashing violently with his claws. The claws were sharp enough to make marks in the stone of the cave walls. When he attempted to cut Robin he simply leapt over the creature's massive arms and punched him in the face. Croc kicked him in the gut and grabbed him with his left arm by the neck. The claws slowly dug into Robin's neck and blood began to come out as he started to choke. "Not only will I strangle the life out of you but just because you gave me such a hard time I will tear your face off too!" he said and his other arm had the sharpened claws readied to rip at the boy's flesh. Robin kicked and struggled but Croc was too strong.

Just then a smash was heard and Nightwing came jumping in from one of the high windows in the Batcave, landing on the platform and also having a pole but it extended to get longer. He slammed Croc in the hand causing him to drop Robin. Nightwing scooted Robin away from Croc with his foot and took the other pole in his second hand he then swung them around and crossed them in an X shape to show off. "Do you think you are going to scare me with your poles? HA!" Croc laughed. He slashed viciously and violently at Nightwing who quickly dodged, rolled, and blocked every single attack. "Go back to the hell from which you came you scum!" he shouted and he drop kicked Croc off the platform from which he was standing.

Croc screamed as he fell to his death. A loud thump was heard from deep underground and below. Nightwing then offered a hand to help Robin to his feet. Robin brushed off his costume. "So you are the new Robin huh? A bit scrawny but you'll grow…" Nightwing said looking at Tim. Robin gave Nightwing an angry glare. "Did you come here just to make fun at me?" he asked angrily. "Actually Barbara called me a little while ago… Alfred the butler recently passed away, he was like family to Bruce, Barbara, and me… I mean he inspired us to become the trio we were" Nightwing said in a hurting voice. "WOAH! Bruce Wayne is Batman? Like Bruce Wayne the super rich millionaire! And Barbara Gordon, daughter of the police commissioner is Batgirl? Who would've thought…?" he said and seemed to be thinking deeply. "Lets go inside kid" Nightwing said.


	4. Don't Wake the Bat

**BATMAN HEROES**

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**Don't Wake the Bat**

Meanwhile at Wayne Industries Research Center… 

Doctor Kirk Langstrom paced around the laboratory thinking. "Francine bring me my serum!" he said. Francine grabbed the vile filled with green glowing ooze and carefully walked it over to her husband. He grabbed the vile and looked at it. "This is it Francine… This may be the key to immortality! With this serum made of bat genes we may be able to add another fifty, maybe even hundred years onto our lives!" he said. "Honey maybe we should test it on a chimp or something first…" Francine warned cautiously. "No… I've studied this for thirty years… now is finally the time! I will finally get what I want… Immortality!" he said and with that he chugged the bottle. Francine stepped back worried but she took out her pen and notebook nevertheless to copy down the results of the experiment.

After a few moments Francine spoke. "So Kirk how do you feel?" she asked. His laugh was heard but Francine could only see the back of his head. He hands trembled with the pen. He turned and as soon as she saw his face she dropped the pen and paper instantly and put her hands over her mouth in fright. Kirk Langstrom's face was badly mutated; it had the appearance of the bat from which he had extracted the genes. Langstrom roared violently and soon his clothes ripped off and large leather-like wings erupted from his back, he had taken the form of a giant man eating bat. Francine screamed especially when she realized her husband now had no control over what the creature did. It blindly flew towards her and bit into her flesh. Francine screamed loudly and the new villain had emerged. He would prowl the nights blind-sighted as Manbat, looking for more flesh and human meals. Soon would Kirk realize the serum was only temporary but what would he do when he found out he killed his darling wife Francine. Manbat leapt out the window and remembered what he had heard in his weaker form. He had heard about three months ago about the city's main vigilante Batman defeating Killer Croc, one of the cities most notorious villains of all time. Manbat thought a man this powerful would be an awesome test of his strength, and it would certainly make him known. If he was going to eat, he might as well make sure that it was someone important. Using his increased senses of smell and hearing he flew towards the Batcave.

To Be Continued until Chapter Five


	5. Batgirl's Fight

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER FIVE

BATGIRL'S FIGHT

Barbara sat in the Batcave on the main computer; Bruce and Tim had gone out to train for the weekend so she had the whole house to herself. Just then she heard a crash and she turned around and looked carefully. She couldn't see anything but her instincts told her not only to rely on her eyes. Quickly she changed into her Batgirl costume and ran outside with a flashlight to observe the area. She heard rustling in the trees behind her and she quickly turned around. Nothing was there. She felt like one of the girls in a horror movie being pursued by a killer.

She walked around the mansion to the back and thought she saw a giant bat-like foot swoop around the corner. She ran across the back courtyard and ended up on the next wall of the manor. She still saw nothing. Batgirl could tell she was being watched, she could feel the breath on her neck. She quickly spun around and saw nothing but she felt the hot breath on her forehead now and realized there was still one place she did not check and that was right above her. She was scared; there was no denying it. She looked up and saw nothing but a little bird fluttering above her. She smiled and grabbed her chest as a sign of relief then she turned around to head back inside the mansion.

When she got to the front door she opened it and right before her stood the most frightening creature she had ever seen. It was a ten-foot bat that growled and had blood dripping from its claws and fangs. Batgirl gasped loudly and dropped the flashlight. The bat then grabbed her and kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying thirty feet outside and crashing into the neighbor's car. She got up and grabbed her back. It was in excruciating pain and she grabbed her forehead. It had smashed into the windshield. She was bleeding a lot. This bat was strong. "What kind of a monster are you…?" she asked and her voice staggered and her body shook with every step. She could see the look of evil in the bat's cruel yellow eyes.

She ran at it and tried to do whatever she could to stop it. She couldn't allow this creature to unleash itself upon the city. It seemed to dodge every punch and kick. It's wings made it very easy for it to avoid any attacks.

The bat glided just above Batgirl's reach and hissed at her. Its wings were spread violently. Batgirl saw it flying higher so that it could swoop down upon her with an aerial attack and she pulled out her grappling hook. She allowed the hook to wrap tightly around Manbat's legs and she led some of the rope in, causing her to be lifted up in the air right underneath Manbat. She then held onto its leg with one hand and began punching it in the back as hard as she could with the other. Manbat screeched and swerved back and forth trying to make Batgirl fall off. She was up to the height of a five story building now and had no intention of falling to her death. She felt her hands slipping more and more off her grappling hook. She had no choice; she untied the grappling hook from Manbat's legs and began to fall.

Quickly she released her grappling hook and it wrapped around one of Bruce's stone gargoyles on the third story of his mansion. She looked back and saw the creature still flying at her. It had its mouth opened and looked like it was going to try and take a bite out of her. Batgirl waited until it was too close to stop and then she swung out of the way as Tarzan would do with his vines. This caused the bat creature to crash into the large stone gargoyle and drop from the night sky into the cement below. Batgirl gazed down and saw him lie there and then suddenly get up and shake off the pain. It snarled at her and then staggered away on its large leathery wings. Batgirl felt great concern for what the creatures might do to the innocent people of Gotham City. She heaved a sigh of relief and then looked at the gargoyle and her face showed an utmost sign of fear. The stone head of the gargoyle to which her grappling hook was attached began to crack and suddenly the head was removed from the body. Batgirl quickly tossed the direction of the rock and let go of her grappling hook so that the stone would not fall upon her. She then closed her eyes and made sure her backside would hit the ground first so that her face would not be damaged and she heard a loud crack and felt an excruciating pain in her spine.

The next thing she remembered she was in a bed but felt too weak to even open her eyes. When she heard the voices of Doctor Foster and her father she knew immediately where she was, she was in the Gotham Hospital. She also thought she heard whispers from Bruce, Tim, and Dick every once and a while but they weren't talking a lot. "I am sorry Mr. Gordon but due to the severe damage to your daughter's spinal cord she will be paralyzed for the rest of her life…" she said. This made Barbara squint her eyes shut even harder then they already were and feel a deep pain of regret in her chest. "You are just lucky that she can even think normally," Dr. Foster said and she heard Gordon begin to cry and the doctor leave the room. She heard Bruce comfort Gordon and for once since her Uncle Alfred died she knew that her life would never again be the same. Doctor Claire Foster never miscalculated a patient's conditions and was the best in Gotham. If Doctor Foster said that Barbara would be paralyzed for life, then Barbara was going to be paralyzed for life. She moved her arms but could not move her legs. Thankfully the accident only affected her lower body, she was only paralyzed from the waist down. But this meant that her Batgirl days were no more.


	6. Battle in Shanghai

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER SIX

TRAINING IN SHANGHAI

Meanwhile while Barbara is resting at the hospital with Dick and Commissioner Gordon Bruce is off on a "training vacation" with Tim Drake to the mountains near Shanghai, China. Both Tim and Bruce are heavily dressed in karate attire and are fighting with long wooden training rods barefoot in the snow.

"Don't forget the first rule Tim" Bruce told him. Robin was breathing heavily and looked tired. "And what exactly was that rule again?" he asked. Bruce muttered, "Don't ever let your guard down." He then swung his rod towards Tim's legs and knocked him to the ground. Bruce then pointed his rod towards Tim's head. "If we were fighting a real criminal you would've just been killed" he said. Tim rolled out of the way and kicked Bruce in the kneecap, causing him to collapse. Tim leapt up to his feet quickly and pointed his rod at Bruce's neck. "If this was a real fight you would've just been killed" Tim repeated. "Touché" Bruce said. He then smiled which resulted in Tim smiling and soon the two were in a fit of laughter as if they were children.

"I thought Bruce Wayne was the man who never smiled," Robin said. Bruce responded simply by saying, "No, Batman is the man who never smiles. Bruce Wayne is the party loving playboy millionaire remember?" he said. The happy moment was broken by a pager going off in Bruce's Pocket.

Bruce pulled out a pager-like device in the shape of a bat. On the screen a message was being sent by Commissioner Gordon's pager. The text on the screen was brief and read, "_Barbara's Hurt_".

"What's wrong?" Tim asked when he saw the concerned look on Bruce's face. "Looks like you are going to get to put on that costume sooner then you thought" he said. He then pushed a button that he had in his other hand and the Bat-Copter landed beside them. "Hop in, it's a 23 hour plane ride and we've got to get moving." Without further explanation Bruce leapt into the plane's driver seat and Robin climbed up to the passenger seat. "Buckle up and prepare for a battle in the skies" Bruce said and the plane took off.

For most of the ride Bruce had the plane on auto-pilot and he was paging Gordon back and forth to get the details. Bruce knew that there was some type of flying creature behind it but he had no idea of how dangerous the creature truly was.


	7. Battle in the Skies

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER SEVEN

BATTLE IN THE SKIES

Batman and Robin are back from their long training session in Shanghai. They are flying the skies in the Batwing looking for the criminal who had caused Barbara's paralysis.

"Keep your eyes peeled kid. When this guy comes out we are taking action immediately" he said. "He shouldn't be that hard to miss he's a giant bat flying through the city terrorizing citizens" he said. Batman suddenly put his finger to his lips as if to tell Robin to be quiet. "What's wrong with you" he asked. "Listen," Batman said in a whisper and pushed a button to turn the air conditioning off and make the plane quieter.

A faint flapping of wings could be heard. The noise sounded like it was at a distance at first but the noise got louder and louder every second until finally it sounded like it was right behind the Batwing. Batman pushed the auto pilot button and him and robin slowly turned around.

All you could see through the back window was the beast's hideous face. It unleashed a loud and bone-shattering screech when they looked at it.

"On the Roof" Batman said urgently. Tim was stunned and asked as if he hadn't heard correctly "WHAT?" "Hurry up to the roof Tim, we have to fight this thing" he said. "But what if I fall!?" he asked in a panicky voice. "The old Robin was a former trapeze artist. He wasn't afraid of heights" he said. A look of determination and passion grew on Robin's face. "Let's go" he said and climbed up a latter to the roof of the plane, where he stood uneasily. He was having a hard time keeping his balance.

Batman crawled up right behind and seemed to be withstanding the conditions perfectly. He grabbed Robin's hand and helped him up to his feet. Together the two heroes stared into the eyes of the beast.

The Manbat slammed it's head into the plane furiously. This caused the plane to shake furiously and Robin was wobbling a lot. "Rule Number Three, Be Prepared" Batman said and he shot out his grappling hook and hooked it onto Manbat's foot. Batman swung himself onto the beast's back and began to punch the creature in the back of the neck. The bat monster flew away from the Batwing trying to violently shake Batman off.

"Set the coordinates for the Batwing!" Batman yelled to Robin. "Set it so that the auto-pilot will take it back to the Batcave!" he yelled now struggling to hold onto Manbat's neck. Robin looked nervous and struggled about whether or not he should risk Bruce's life to save his own. "Just do as I say!" Batman yelled sounding angrier this time.

Robin struggled his way into the inside of the vehicle where he flipped three switches pulled a lever and selected the coordinates using a touch screen. "Destination: BATCAVE" the Batwing said in its monotone voice. The batwing then zipped away quickly.

Manbat attempted to go after the plane but Batman began delivering several blows to the creature's head to stop it from catching up and he succeeded because soon enough the creature slowed down and instead turned its attention towards Batman.

The creature finally shook hard enough that Batman fell and the grappling hook fell out of his hand. Batman was now hanging onto the corner of Manbat's wing for his dear life.

The Manbat then sunk it's fangs into Batman's hands. Batman screamed in pain and fell from the air. He felt himself reaching for the grappling hook in his utility belt while he fell but found nothing. This could be the end for Batman, he thought.

Batman closed his eyes remembers that fateful night from when he first became what he is today. Images of Jack Napier's face appeared in his mind. His cold eyes were gazing viciously at him and his family. He remembered him saying, "So tell me. Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moon light?" Then the sound of the loud gunshot was heard. Batman remembered the blood that emitted from the tiny wound that the bullet had left. There was so much blood. He remembered his fear, and how he let Napier walk away. After that day he promised himself he would never let a criminal walk away again.

Batman reached into the backmost pocket of his belt and pulled out a long black whip. He had picked this up after he had battled with Selina Kyle and prevented her from killing Max Shrek. To him, it was a memento not of the relationship that Batman had shared with Catwoman but instead a memento of Bruce Wayne's feelings for Selina Kyle. He used the whip to latch onto a flagpole on a nearby building. He then swung himself onto the roof of the building, but dropping the whip in the process.

Bruce looked up into the sky and heard the bat creature's loud screech of anger. He saw the monster fly away towards Lake Gotham. He had to stop this monster but he knew he wouldn't be able to defeat it when it was in its bat form. From the bat's reactions in the fight Batman was sure it had human emotions and was a much better thinker and tactician then any bat would be. Yes, he was almost 100 certain that this bat creature is or at one point has been a human. If he could figure out who that human is then he could take him down permanently.


	8. A Date With Destiny

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER EIGHT

A Date With Destiny

It was around 1 am on a Sunday. Bruce Wayne sat in the Batcave by himself in front of a large computer monitor scanning through hundreds of recent news articles worldwide concerning bats. Bruce seemed to be nearly falling asleep as he searched. Suddenly he found an article which caught his interest. It was concerning world famous scientist Doctor Kirk Langstrom and his wife Francine Langstrom. The title read, "Husband and Wife Scientists Concoct Sonar Sense Potion".

Bruce clicked the article and began to read. The article discussed a medicine being worked on by the couple to help deaf people by giving them the bat's sonar hearing sense. According to the article the potion had not yet gone through the testing stages. Kirk Langstrom was quoted in the article saying that he would probably test it on himself because he was losing his hearing in his old age and he feared there being a side-effect that caused damage to the ears of any of the test subjects.

At this point Bruce was almost certain that Doctor Langstrom was the Manbat. However, something seemed strange to Bruce. He remembered hearing the name Langstrom somewhere before. He had heard it recently. Bruce sat in deep thought for a while trying to remember where he could have possibly heard of the Langstrom Couple before this night.

The answer seemed to suddenly come out of nowhere to Bruce and he picked up the Sunday newspaper. He read an article typed by Vicki Vale titled, "Scientist Wife Murdered". The article discussed how a woman was found brutally murdered in her apartment and how her husband dialed the police when he came home after a midnight stroll in the park and found her. It states that the police have ruled it out as a suicide but Vicki challenges the ideals of the police saying that the damage done to the body of Francine Langstrom could not have been self inflicted.

Bruce decided that to be sure of the Manbat's identity only one person in the entire world could help him and that was Vicki Vale, who had investigated the crime. Bruce also thought he would talk to Commissioner Gordon who had been present at the crime scene and most likely disagreed with the police's decision. Luckily for Bruce he had known Vicki quite well in the past.

Bruce picked up the phone and dialed the numbers. Vicki finally answered in a tired sounding voice. After Bruce explained to her that Batman had a mission that he needed to attend to and that he wanted to meet with her in a restaurant later on that day Vicki had no choice but to say yes.

The next day Bruce dressed in his best clothes and stepped into the main hall of the Wayne Manor. "Can I trust you two to take care of Tim and the mansion when I am on this mission?" he asked looking at Dick and Barbara who was now seated in a wheelchair. Both of them nod their heads as if to say that he could.

Bruce sat in the backseat of his limo. Maggie Paige had taken the honor of being Bruce's new limo driver after the death of Alfred. "Where to Mister Wayne?" she asked coolly. "Can you take me to Madame Frances' Restaurant downtown?" he asked. "Sure thing" she said and with that the long black limousine drove down the streets.

Bruce finally arrived at the restaurant and took a seat across the table from Vicki. She had looked a lot older then the last time he had seen her. She seemed to be almost fifty years old now and still she looked as beautiful as ever.

"So Bruce, tell me why you decided to come to me. I mean the last time we talked was 24 years ago," she began. Bruce didn't hesitate in his answer. "I have no intentions of pressuring you Vicki. I only need an eye-witness account like I asked over the phone" he said calmly. Bruce set the newspaper on the table and pointed to the article concerning the Langstroms. Vicki took a deep breath and a sip of wine before she explained the article to Bruce.

"Knox and I were the first on the scene. We got there before any other reporters did. There was blood everywhere and it looked like there was a large bite mark in her neck" she said. Bruce looked surprised. "I'm surprised you haven't heard anything about the death. Your friend Commissioner Gordon was there. Not to mention, Kirk Langstrom has worked for Wayne Industries for thirty years researching a serum that can grant a key to immortality. I think this serum might be somehow related to the emergence of the Manbat creature but I still have to investigate. The town is starting to think Batman is behind this whole thing. But we both know that isn't true right?" she asked sounding as if she was testing Bruce to make sure that he truly was not behind it. "Of course not, Batman wouldn't hurt a fly" he said. Vicki looked satisfied and stepped up from the table. Bruce subsequently stood out of his chair as well.

"Let's cut a deal Wayne, I'll help you clear your name if you help me capture the Manbat and land the story of the century" she said. Bruce seemed to like this idea. "How would you like to visit the Batcave again Ms. Vale?" he asked. Vicki tried to look professional but cracked a smile. Bruce left the restaurant through the front door with Vicki with him. The limousine pulled up and Bruce sat in the back seat after helping Vicki in. Maggie Paige's innocent voice came from the front seat saying, "Where to Master Wayne?" "To the Batcave" he said in his normal voice. "You know, the Batmobile would have been a more exciting means of travel" she said and Bruce smiled.


	9. Killer Croc Returns

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER NINE

Killer Croc Returns

The limousine drove down the regular path and eventually ended up in the Batcave behind the Batmobile. Bruce stepped out and helped Vicki. "Thank you Maggie" he said and walked up towards the computers as the limousine was pulling away to go park in the front of the Wayne Manor. Vicki gazed at the room in awe. So much had changed since the last time she had been here. There were now glass cases containing the costumes of Batman and every one of his allies on the left side of the cave and costumes of his villains on the right. Vicki put her fingers against the glass case containing a purple tuxedo and closed her eyes remembering a painful memory. She then glanced at the tokens of enemies Batman had fought while they had gone their separate ways. She walked down the line of glass cases letting her fingers glide down the side as she saw costumes of The Scarecrow, The Penguin, Two-Face, The Riddler, Poison Ivy, and her jaw almost dropped when she saw the turbo suit belonging to Mr. Freeze. She then glanced at the costume of Harley Quinn and at a small ventriloquist dummy sitting alone in a glass case.

"Wow you've sure had your share of weirdoes haven't you?" she asked while she was walking up to Bruce at the computer. "They keep coming" he joked. Vicki sat near the edge of the walkway of the Batcave, letting her legs dangle off of the side.

Suddenly Vicki felt a large scaly hand grab her leg and it pulled her down. Vicki screamed and while she was falling caught a glimpse of what was holding her, a large lizard-like man with sharp teeth and huge muscles, his eyes were glowing red. Eventually Vicki fell and found herself in the slimy sewer waters, her leg was broken. Killer Croc landed on his feet. Vicki spit out the green sewage water that had gotten in her mouth and struggled to support her weight on one leg. "Now let's see if Wayne can get down here before I slit your pretty little throat" he hissed and when he smiled his fangs could be seen.

Hearing Vicki's screams, Bruce didn't even waste time to put on his Batman costume. He ran over to the glass jar and ripped off his utility belt and quickly buckled it onto his waist. He grabbed out his grappling hook and attached it to the side of the platform and quickly made his way to the ground beside Vicki.

"Sit down Vicki, make it easier for yourself" he said. Vicki listened and stopped trying to support her weight, instead sitting down in the sewer water. "I've been living in here the whole time just waiting for the perfect time to strike Wayne" he said. "It's really a shame that you didn't die" he said and ran at Killer Croc attempting to punch him. Croc grabbed his fist and twisted his hand around until it made a loud cracking noise. Bruce flinched in pain. "I'm going to kill you, then I'm going to kill Tim Drake like my boss had asked me. And then once I'm done I might just kill the rest of your little bat family. That includes this dearie and the commissioner." Vicki looked surprised. After hearing this she was almost certain that Commissioner Gordon knew Batman's true identity.

Bruce pushed a small button on his belt to signal for the aid of Robin and Nightwing. Just when he did that a loud screeching noise could be heard from outside of the Batcave. Manbat must have picked up on his scent and followed him home. "What's the matter bat? Got other fish to fry?" Croc added as he slowly approached him with violent reptilian eyes. Vicki then kicked Croc in the stomach and sprayed him in the eyes with pepper spray. "Go, fight off Langstrom. I can hold him off until your sidekicks get here," she said. Batman nodded and used his grappling hook and within moments seemingly vanished into thin air. Vicki Vale was a strong woman and could take care of herself.

Croc finished screaming and swiped at his burning eyes. He could no longer see and began swiping randomly with his claws, missing Vicki every time. Vicki reached into her purse again and got a can of hairspray and a lighter. She lit the lighter and blew the hairspray into it, causing it to torch Croc. Croc screamed and dived into the sewage water at their feet. His scaly skin was now considerably darker then it was before. He roared angrily and took one more swipe and this time he didn't miss. His claw cut right into Vicki's throat. Vicki grabbed her throat in pain and realized this was the last few seconds of her life. She wanted to take down this beast with her. She pulled out her long pen, which she used to take notes, and drove it into the temple of the beast.

Croc roared in pain and fell to the ground, dead. The pen had struck him directly in the brain. Vicki subsequently fell and died after.

Moments later Nightwing and Robin landed down in the sewers. The sight of the two bodies seemed to be too much for the new Robin to bear. He hugged Nightwing, covering his face in his body. Nightwing patted his head. "It's alright kid, it's going to be okay," he said. He then pulled out a walkie-talkie like device and called the person on the other line. "Commissioner, we have two men down in the sewers below the Batcave"

Nightwing looked at Robin. "Robin, go up and help Batman. I am going to stay here until Barbara and the Commissioner arrive," he said. Robin pulled out his grappling hook and was about to shoot it up but Nightwing interrupted him by saying "Hey". Robin looked over to see what he wanted and Nightwing finished, "Be Strong." Robin nodded and pulled himself away with his grappling hook and he had vanished just like Batman had previously.

Nightwing saw a small card in the pocket of Croc's torn pants. It was a license to compete in professional boxing. On the license it said, Waylon Jones for the name and the man's picture somewhat resembled a human form of Croc. In his picture a large muscular Hispanic man could be seen he had short black hair and appeared shirtless in the picture. The man looked aggressive and determined to do whatever it takes to win a boxing match.

Nightwing put the puzzle together and realized that this was Killer Croc before he was the creature that he was today.

"It's a highly rare skin disease," said a voice from the back of the sewers. Nightwing looked around and saw Gordon and Barbara. "You better thank me later Dick; Do you know how hard it is to drive around a wheelchair in an inch of sewer water?" she said. "I'm marking the time of death as July 18th, 2008 at 7:45 pm" he said and wrote down both of their names on a sheet of paper. "Now I better go and call her husband…" Gordon said walking away. "Husband?" Nightwing asked not believing that the woman Bruce had gone out with was married. "Yeah, some guy named Alexander Knox" Gordon walked away mumbling to himself.

This left an awkward moment between Dick and Barbara. "He goes through so much stress I just wish he would take a day off every once and a while" she said. Nightwing could tell she was upset and he put his hand on hers. "Don't worry Barb, I'm here for you. He's going to be just fine" he said. Barbara looked up and smiled. Within moments the two were sharing a long and heartwarming kiss.


	10. The Grand Finale

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER TEN

The Grand Finale

Robin ran as fast as he could to try to reach the outside of the manor. When he opened the doors he saw the Manbat carrying Batman by the shoulders. Batman was desperatly flailing at the monster's legs with his batarang. Batman needed help and right now Robin knew he was the only one who could give him that help.

He pulled out his grappling hook and shot it. It hooked around one of Manbat's ankles. Manbat seemed to be off balance in his flying and wobbled a bit. Robin swung himself by the cord of his grappling hook to land on Manbat's back.

Now Robin was on the back and Batman shifted his body and was now hanging onto Manbat's leg with both arms. Robin began pounding on the back of Manbat's head.

Batman crawled his way up onto Manbat's back as well. "I don't think hitting him is going to work kid" he said. Robin looked discouraged and out of ideas. "Bats are sensitive to light intensity and can visually discriminate shapes and patterns in extremely low light situations" Batman preached. "Boy you really know your bats" Robin said. Robin suddenly came up with an idea and he pulled out his own walkie-talkie like device. "Barbara fire up the Bat Signal" Robin said into his walkie talkie. After hanging onto Manbat for thirty minutes, the Bat Signal was fired from the top of the police station.

Batman and Robin steered Manbat towards the Bat Signal light. Manbat hissed and began turning back into his human form. Batman and Robin jumped off his back and swung themselves to the top of the Police Station beside Barbara. Manbat's loud screeches were heard for miles throughout the city. Suddenly Batman saw the shape of the gigantic bat creature transform into the shape of an elderly man. Kirk Langstrom then fell to his death. "People will do anything to escape death" Batman said when he was thinking about how Kirk had taken the serum to stop his weakness of old age.

_Early Next Morning…_

Bruce, Tim, Barbara, Commissioner Gordon, and Maggie Paige were all in the mansion, dressed in their most formal clothes. Gordon approached Bruce and put his hand on his shoulder in a fatherly way. "Alfred's funeral is in an hour… are you sure you are ready for this boy?" he asked. Bruce nodded, although he was very unsure. The last funeral he had attended had been for his parents and he did not take it well either.

The group walked outside and Maggie got into the drivers seat of the limousine. Bruce got in the passengers seat. In the back was where Tim, Barbara, and Commissioner Gordon sat, along with Barbara's now folded up wheelchair.

Even though Alfred had lived to be one hundred and two years old it didn't make the situation any easier for Bruce.

At the funeral the group stepped out of the car and were greeted by an attractive man in his late forties. The man had short brown hair and a british accent. Bruce had remembered meeting this man a few years earlier, just after his rendezvous with Poison Ivy. His name was Julian Pennyworth and he had previously helped Bruce Wayne win a battle against the Scarecrow.

Julian shook hands with Bruce and lead him to the gathering in front of the tombstone. Many friends and relatives were surrounding Alfred's coffin, including several members of the Gotham City Police Department, including Renee Montoya and Harvey Bullock. Bruce the gravestone. It read, "_Alfred Pennyworth, Loving Father, Great Friend_". Then underneath the dates read, November 23rd 1912- December 8th 2014.

The priest stepped forward and began giving a speech about Alfred and his life and Bruce felt a tear appear rolling down his cheek. Behind him he heard Julian whispering to Barbara, "Where's Dick?" There was no answer which usually meant he wasn't here yet. Bruce knew that Dick wouldn't have missed Alfred's funeral. Something was going terribly wrong.


	11. Epilogue

BATMAN HEROES

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Epilogue

The sky was darkening and Dick Grayson is speeding on Route 112 trying to arrive at Alfred's funeral in Gotham City. Dick looked at his watch and noticed that it was 5:00 pm. Alfred's funeral should have been over an hour ago. He would have made it if it weren't for the black van that had kept cutting him off and going twenty miles below the speed limit off an on for two hours. Dick was not going eighty miles an hour and saw his exit coming up.

Suddenly, the black van pulled up beside him and cut him off. Dick immediately leapt off of his motorcycle and watched it crash into the black van. Dick instinctively used his grappling hook and was now hanging from one of the airborne highway signs, avoiding other cars, which were crashing into both Dick's motorcycle and the black van. A pile-up was forming and there was nothing he could do.

When one of the cars crashed into many of the other vehicles it caused an explosion. Dick swung himself off to the side of the road and just barely out of the way of the explosion. He looked at the cars engulfed in flames. There had to be at least ten cars in the crash and an additional four that had been hit from the explosion.

The black van seemed to be unaffected by the crash or the explosion. It turned around and slowly drove through the flames and towards Dick.

Dick knew something weird was going on so he leapt up and held out his fists ready to fight. Suddenly the back doors of the black van opened and revealed seventeen soldiers wearing black hoodies with their faces painted black. They each carried large black guns.

They marched out of the van and circled around Dick. Dick managed to fight off a few of them but then one of them behind him hit him in the heat brutally with his gun.

The man who had hit Dick looked at the others and nodded. They responded by nodding back and they all helped to tie up Dick and throw him in the back of the black van. The one who had hit him then gave him a shot in the neck to keep him asleep. After giving him the shot he spoke loudly to the driver, "Nightwing is captured Black Mask. We're ready to bring him to headquarters now."

A maniacal laugh could be heard from the front seat and the car sped off into the distance past the exit leading to Gotham City. Two of the soldiers closed the back doors to the van and looked out the windows. They could see themselves passing a sign that said, _"Welcome to Bludhaven"_ and the two soldiers laughed as well.

To Be Continued


End file.
